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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27936832">Unfinished RWBY Ficlets</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlleyWalk_writes/pseuds/Alley_Walk'>Alley_Walk (AlleyWalk_writes)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>RWBY</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>ADD sucks okay?, Avatar!Weiss, Character Study, Child Abuse, Dark Fairy Tale Elements, Ficlet Collection, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Kitsune!Adam, Magic, Negative Character Growth, Spirit World, lok crossover</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 22:08:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,246</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27936832</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlleyWalk_writes/pseuds/Alley_Walk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>OR: too much deppression, too much ADD, and too many ideas.</p><p>1: Iceflower (Elsa!Weiss, with a few fairy tale twists)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ruby Rose &amp; Weiss Schnee, Summer Rose &amp; Weiss Schnee, Weiss Schnee &amp; Adam Taurus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Iceflower</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Chapter 1 • Ice Queen</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ruby peered through her veil as she walked, sweat slick at the bridge of her nose and the undersides of her eyes, despite the cold of the October afternoon. The forest was alive with animal sounds. Birds chirped high notes to each other as leaves rustled and animals fled. Rough, gnarled branches reached their limbs towards the sky, blanketing her in a thick canopy overhead. Thin slivers of sunlight fell through onto the forest floor below. Leaf litter crunched under Ruby’s feet, and she was trying to be quiet, she was! She was the epitome of quietness, that was her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The six of them had split up to search for shelter for the night. Ruby had partnered with Jaune, who had wandered off to go pee.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There should be a castle around here, somewhere,” Pyrrha had said, pointing to the map. “A friend of mine asked me to renovate it for her, so it should be in good condition.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did this friend say why?” Ren had asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, which I did think was strange at the time. But she was a rather reclusive girl, at least when we last met.” Pyrrha said, with a sad smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is this that friend of yours that disappeared?” Yang asked, her eyes soft.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘Disappeared’, is a kind word for it, but yes,” Pyrrha said with a smile, waving their concerns away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ren looked thoughtful, but said nothing on the matter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Ruby picked her way down a hill, the heel of her shoe slipped, and she lost her balance and fell painfully on her butt, screaming the rest of her way down the hill. “Skirt, skirt, ow ow, skirt, </span>
  <em>
    <span>ow</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” Pulling leaves off of her butt and out of the folds of her skirt, Ruby turned and blinked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A casket of ice lay on the ground at Ruby’s feet. It stood in a small clearing, the sunshine making the casket glitter along its surface. Perched on its center was a delicate ice flower, soft petals opening gently outwards towards their leaves. Without thinking, Ruby reached forward and grasped the flower in her hand, pulling back as if to pick it from the casket like she would a bush of roses.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The flower came away in her hand, cold to the touch. The casket shimmered, its top giving way as it began to melt. Ruby ‘eep’d and took a step back, and there was a wash of cold mist that blinded her for a moment. A dark shadow stood from inside the mist, blue eyes aglow, and Ruby found herself awed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But first… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi, my name’s Ruby!” She said, waving with a smile.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Weiss has just woken up from a very important nap, and this…! This…! </span>
  <em>
    <span>Dunderhead</span>
  </em>
  <span> has ruined everything! She parted the mist with a wave of her hand. “You idiot! Do you know who I </span>
  <em>
    <span>am</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dolt tilted her head, veil waving with the motion. “Uh. No?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am </span>
  <em>
    <span>Weiss Schnee</span>
  </em>
  <span>, you neanderthal! Of the SDC.” She said proudly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She could almost hear her frown. “SDC… SDC...” She shrugged. “I don’t think I’ve heard of it, sorry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss 'hrmph'd, lifting up her nose at the uneducated creten. She blinked then, frowning as she took in her surroundings. It was a forest, completely uncovered by the snow and ice of her home kingdom. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Things sharpened to a crystal clarity, then.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But no.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It simply couldn't be. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"The Schnee Dust Company! The current top manufacturer of high-quality Dust?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dolt shrugged helplessly. "Sorry."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss took a deep breath. Stay calm. Stay centered. Stay focused in the moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"The current status of Atlas?" Her voice came out shaky, and she damned herself for it.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pfft. Atlas has been a snowy mountain for hundreds of years.” The dolt scoffed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss felt her heart fracture. She could feel her powers building, overwhelming her. She wrapped her arms around herself and squeezed her eyes shut as cold washed over her. When she opened her eyes, half of the clearing was flooded with snow. Frost curled from her fingers, but she shoved the rest of it all down and away, taking a deep breath to calm herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Wow,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> the dolt said, and though she couldn’t see her eyes through the veil she was wearing, she saw the flash of her teeth through the darkness as she smiled, reaching awed hands towards the snow at their feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It made rage flash through her. “Why are you wearing that stupid veil anyway, you </span>
  <em>
    <span>dolt?</span>
  </em>
  <span> What are you, in </span>
  <em>
    <span>mourning?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> She asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dolt slumped. “Well, usually I wear something a bit more specialised, but recently a couple of my teammates died.” She tilted her head. "What about you? Are you okay? You seemed a little..."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I'm </span>
  <em>
    <span>fine!”</span>
  </em>
  <span> She snapped. She felt abashed by her social gaffe, but she tried her best to regain moral high ground. “Why cover your face? Are you being considerate to others in some way?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She meant it as a polite way to inquire if a person was secretly horridly ugly, but this doltish veiled girl didn’t take it that way. Instead, she nodded vigorously and said, “My gaze means death. I veil it to protect people.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss's eyes widened in surprise. She blinked, her eyes narrowing. The dolt was thinly muscled, more thoroughly along her limbs than her body. She wore a black corset with a long sleeved shirt underneath. Its sleeves were a cloud grey, where she wore black fingerless armguards, before it turned stone grey at the chest, a red cloak wrapping around her neck to drape down her shoulders. A red skirt with a slit down the side completed the look quite nicely, with sensible black boots and thick grey leggings, and she carried a folded up dust infused weapon of some sort. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss felt lessened with her loose hair and crumpled clothing. Her only redemption was that horrible black veil, which almost completely obscured her face, and the red and black hair that made her look like a demented peacock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The point was, though, that this girl was obviously a Huntress in training. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She placed her hands on her hips. She finally knew what she was going to do. "Alright, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ruby</span>
  </em>
  <span>. If we're going to do this… </span>
  <em>
    <span>thing</span>
  </em>
  <span> we're going to be doing, some ground rules need to be set up here."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ruby took a step backwards, unbalancing slightly before she caught herself. She was looking down at her hands, tapping her forefingers together for some inane reason. "Wwwhat are you talking about?" Her voice cracked, wow, what was she, a teenager?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss sighed. "You're going to take me. Back to your </span>
  <em>
    <span>camp?"</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>"Ohhh." She sighed, shoulders slumping. Weirdo. Then she perked up. "What rules, then?" </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"No asking me about any personal business of mine. Leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone. And overall, no touching of myself or my person." </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"O...kay?" The dolt did not compute. Weiss shot her a cold look that sent the point home.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Don't expect anything of me, and I won't expect anything of you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>She just needed to get somewhere safe where she could think through this whole mess clearly. Hopefully she could find more information on her current situation. She sideyed her current present company. Somewhere.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>. . . . . . . . . . </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Chapter 2 • The House That Has No Home</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yang gave a sigh of relief as their group crested the last rise of the hill towards the shelter Pyrrha had promised. Thank Remnant, now maybe the Ice Queen would finally stop her complaining. She put her hands on her hips and whistled, taking it all in. The house was a wide, sprawling building of at least two stories, with japanese style roofs. She couldn’t see the color in this light, but it had tall, slim windows that were dark from the inside. Guess nobody’s home, hah. There were several trees hanging about in the front yard. Curious, Yang went to take a look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was mud underfoot, and Yang stomped extra hard to get the dirt off of her shoes. There were circular objects hanging on one of the trees. Halloween decorations? She couldn’t make it out in the darkness. She clicked on a flashlight, and plump oranges came into view.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got oranges over here!” Yang called.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Apples.” Ren agreed, somewhere to the left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How are there oranges during this time of year?” Pyrrha wondered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s obviously been enriched by Dust.” The Ice Queen said self-importantly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks for the input,” Yang grunted, stepping in a particularly difficult patch of muck. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uhh, Yang?” Her darling sister said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Ruby?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s someone’s vegetable garden you’re currently sullying,” Ice Queen extraordinaire told her self-importantly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yang looked down at her feet. A flashlight beam illuminated a path of destruction, cauliflower trampled and pea pods exploded to nothing but mush on the ground. That familiar, hated anger, ignited inside her. She took a deep breath. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Calm down. You’re dangerous when you’re angry.</span>
  </em>
  <span> “What’s it to you, Ice Queen?” Great. Real nice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s it to </span>
  <em>
    <span>me?</span>
  </em>
  <span> You mean other than the fact that someone </span>
  <em>
    <span>obviously</span>
  </em>
  <span> lives here, and you’ve just given them a plausible excuse to kick us out into a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Grimm infested</span>
  </em>
  <span> forest?” Ice Queen shrilled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jaune stepped between them, hands held up. “C’mon, you guys. Can’t we all just get along?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, </span>
  <em>
    <span>no</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” Weiss said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No way,” Yang agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why are we fighting? We should already be sleeping.” Nora interjected.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ren put a hand on her shoulder. “We’re all a bit tired. Things will look better in the morning.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ice Queen looked like she wanted to protest when Pyrrha stepped forward, a reassuring expression on her face. “We have food and we have shelter. I’m sure everything else can be resolved later.”</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Weiss strode cautiously through the manor, aware that any wrong move could further invoke the wrath of their mysterious host, whomever they may be. Though so far, there had been no sign of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss ran a delicate finger over the black painted walls, bare of any decoration. Elaborate white wainscoting ran along the walls, the dove grey ceilings vaulting high overhead. The floor was bare stone, making Weiss shiver in her stockinged feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>That blonde barbarian had collapsed onto the first usable piece of furniture she had seen, toeing off her incriminating boots right on the floor beneath her without care. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She had seen the Nikos warrior and a couple of others rooting around in the kitchen like thieves. Weiss had thought better of a warrior of the Nikos line, but apparently she was false to assume that a certain integrity followed with diligence on the battlefield. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She herself had once dreamed of being a Huntress. She had even had a weapon of choice that suited her abilities, and began to train in secret. Her father put a stop to that before it could really begin, however. But if she closed her eyes, she could still remember the precise and coordinated dance she had weaved in the dead of night, rapier in hand.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss finally found a bathroom and nodded to herself. She searched around and acquired fresh clothing in a nearby bedroom. Surely their host wouldn't mind if she borrowed them. Surely anyone had to admit that the situation was appalling. Out in the middle of nowhere, no civilization in sight. Weiss was going to find whomever put her here and </span>
  <em>
    <span>ice them to the floor</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss stepped out of the tub and drained it, drying herself off with a nearby towel. She assumed that the pipes and other necessities were Dust powered, for which she had to hand it to whomever had designed the building. It was truly ingenious.   </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss stepped hesitantly before the mirror, afraid of what she might see. The proud girl that stood in the reflection before her was nearly unrecognizable, her white hair wet and limp down her back, her arctic blue eyes dark with some unnamable worry. The damning curve of her wing reflected back at her, primary feathers unfolding to flick water from their surface. The gaping hole where her right wing should be looked at her in reproach, and Weiss looked away, hurriedly putting on her clothes.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Supernova</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Weiss breathed in and out, her eyes closed. The sun was warm on her back, and her keen ears picked up the calm breathing of her mentor beside her. She had probably most likely already succeeded where Weiss had failed. Frustration bubbled up in her chest, but she straightened in her meditative pose and let it float away on the midmorning breeze.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took her awhile, but she eventually fell into a calm meditative state, her mind calm and her breath even. She felt something tug at her navel, gently untucking her being from her physical form until she opened her spiritual eyes and stood as her wings relaxed to stretch out on either side of her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One of the more fascinating things about the Spirit World was that it wasn’t a stagnant place. Its dimensions overlayed the living world, and was thus altered alongside it to account for its space and energy. Air Temple Island still stood before her, markedly different than before. It had been turned into a verdant grassland, the sedge grasses reaching up to her thighs. They glowed with a white, incandescent light, cresting in an invisible breeze, were soft and cool to the touch as Weiss stepped out and away from her physical form. Large glowing white flowers loomed overhead, where strange creatures hovered to feast on their nectar. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer Rose stood before her among the grasses, giving her a welcoming smile. “Good job, Weiss. You’re getting much better at meditation.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss flushed at the praise. She inclined her head. “Thank you, Master Rose.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer smiled with a shake of her head. “I told you, ‘Summer’ is fine.” She clapped Weiss on the back. “Now come on, we’ve got some ground to cover before we reach our destination.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss nodded in agreement, sending a last glance towards their bodies. Summer’s Airbender tattoos looked even more stark for her physical form’s pale and washed out appearance, her own eyes open and glowing a bright white. Her wings, relaxed and spread out behind her, glowed as well. Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Weiss turned away and followed after Summer, folding her wings neatly to her back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>(She wished she could just make them disappear.)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>(Perhaps then her father would not look at her with such concealed hatred in his eyes.)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Have you been practicing your Semblance?” Summer asked, silver eyes gleaming under the glow of the sedge grass. They were walking side by side, the taller woman slowing her strides so Weiss could keep up. Summer’s black shoulder length hair blew in the breeze, and though Weiss could feel no wind she knew her own hair was doing the same.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Mast-I mean, yes I have.” Weiss corrected at Summer’s raised eyebrow. She frowned. “You never really explained how people gain their Semblances in the first place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer gave her an approving smile. “Good question. The thing is that most people are uncertain as to how Semblances came about, though there are many theories.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you have one, I suppose?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer nodded. “In my opinion, Semblances seem to crop up in people who have been somehow touched by the Spirit World. They could have visited it by accident or been attacked by a rogue spirit, though either of those things would be hard to confirm.” She rubbed the back of her head. “Especially considering how often memory loss occurs to people unprepared to enter the Spirit World.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer smiled at her. “Then of course there’s you. The most spiritest spirit to ever spirit.” She reached over to try to catch Weiss in a noogie, but Weiss ducked under it, her wings flaring out in offense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She relaxed, then, her mouth quirking up into a small smile. “I suppose you could put it that way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer stopped them before a copse of molten trees. “Do you remember the rules I taught you about spirits, Weiss?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss thought for a moment. “Never lie to a spirit. And never make a deal with one you don’t trust. If you do, never break your word, no matter what.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Summer nodded. “And never show fear. The nasty ones feed off of it. There are a few other rules, but luckily, the spirit we’ll be meeting today will be relatively harmless. Now.” She brought her fingers to her lips and whistled. After a moment’s pause Weiss heard violent rustling of the sedge grass as something shot towards them. Weiss’s heart was in her throat, but she stood her ground.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still, her hand lay on the rapier at her hip when a black and red blur broke through the sedge grass in front of them. It stopped before them, molten red eyes looking up at Summer, while its tail wagged, wafting a trail of smoke behind it. It smelled of sulfur, and looked like a wolf except with bigger, more rounded ears and five toes instead of four and a dewclaw. It’s fur was pure black. Dark smoke permeated in a cloud around its form and drifted up in choking tendrils into the air, and its tongue dripped red lava from its maw that sizzled as it hit the earth. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello, Bug,” Summer said with a smile, digging into her pocket until she came up with a piece of fire Dust. The wolf came to attention, ears perked, practically wriggling with excitement. Summer laughed and threw the Dust towards the wolf, who caught it in its jaws and crunched down on it. The wolf turned its attention towards Weiss and wagged its tail hopefully, looking up at her with big molten eyes that melted Weiss’s heart as surely as they could most likely melt steel. Summer smiled at her and passed over a piece of fire Dust, and Weiss tossed it to the wolf. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The wolf practically wriggled with happiness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>. . . . . . . . . . </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Republic City was bustling today. She could hear the Schnee-mobiles driving down the streets, the engines a familiar bassy purr to her ears. Horns honked and tires screeched, people calling out in greeting as they passed each other by on the sidewalk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I believe we were speaking of the balance, miss Schnee?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Republic City was bustling today, and here she was, stuck in her home, listening to a man who wouldn’t even address her by her first name talk about ‘the balance’. Weiss listened dutifully, as was her due, but her mind was elsewhere. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Luckily for her, he either didn’t notice or chose not to, and quickly departed from the manor with a curt goodbye. Perhaps he’d noticed after all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is he gone?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Weiss looked up and smiled. A vibrant red fox trotted towards her, eight tails bobbing behind him. He had intelligent blue eyes, the left one blinded by some accident. There were small black horns on his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Adam, he’s gone.” She replied, lifting up her arm as he hopped up onto the couch, placing his small front paws on her thighs as he looked up at her. He cocked his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can leave, if you want.” He offered slyly, and Weiss had to grin. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course. Are we meeting the others?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam only cackled in reply.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Weiss walked beside and a little behind Adam, trying to keep up with the taller kitsune’s – or man’s, as he was now – long stride. Schnee-mobiles rumbled down the street, the smell of leaves and greenery coming from a nearby park. The breeze was cool yet pleasant against her skin, but when Weiss caught sight of herself in the windowpane of a nearby shop, she startled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her reflection was wrong. While her skin was the same deep brown of the Northern Tribes that it should have been, her eyes were a deeper, darker blue than their normal icy complexure, and her hair was an unnatural shade of red.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Adam Character Study</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Adam stood with his parents, each holding onto one of his hands. The place they were in had an unwelcome feel to it. High rising grey walls with windows layered in grime, dirty tiled floors and several doors that lead off into different parts of the building. There were broadsheets and posters on the walls, and while the pictures looked interesting, the symbols were lost on Adam. He looked around worriedly. Everyone was so quiet. Was something wrong? The faunus queued up in the line around him were battered and weary; were they from the slums, like them?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam’s stomach grumbled at the thought. Food had been scarce lately, mom and dad barely able to bring enough home to feed them. Adam had wanted to help, and his parents had assured him that they had something in mind. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They finally came to the front of the line, and Adam sighed with relief, impatient to get their business settled. There were four humans standing in front of a sterile steel door, one holding a clipboard with a dragon-scanner perched on his shoulder. Adam’s eyes widened as he saw the small snake-like dragon, and it fixed its glowing gaze on him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Name?” The human with the clipboard asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Adam Taurus.” Mom said, pushing Adam forward a little</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Show me your barcode, please.” Adam glanced towards his parents, and mom nodded, though there was a look in her eyes that Adam couldn’t read.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam rolled up his sleeve to bare the barcode on the inside of his wrist. A beam of light flashed from the dragon-scanner’s eyes and swept over his wrist, before winking from existence. The dragon-scanner lifted its head, ears twitching as it chirruped to its handler. The glasses the human was wearing flashed with light, and he scribbled something down on his clipboard.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And is he serving willingly?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mom looked nervous. “Is it a problem?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. We’ll just put something on his disciplinary file just in case.” Adam’s eyes widened at that. His eyes turned to one of the posters, which showed a faunus wearing a hardhat. Betrayal burned deep in his chest, and he turned and dashed away. He dodged through the crowd and caught a few pitying looks through his tears, but no one stopped him. His sharp ears heard the pounding of footsteps and he turned towards the door only to be transfixed by glowing eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried to move away but found he couldn’t. All he could do was stare into that glowing blue gaze. The spell broke when he was lifted up by two pairs of hands, kicking and biting. He fought all the way through the sterile metal door, calling his parent’s names.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They never came.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adam was strapped down to a metal table. A man stood over him with an ugly look on his face, cuts and bite marks from Adam’s struggle clear on his arms. “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this.” He said. He took the SDC brand out of the fire, and without warning pressed it directly into Adam’s face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam screamed.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adam hit the pickaxe against the rock again. He was sure there wasn’t actually any Dust ore here. In his sixth months mining, he’d gotten pretty good at being able to tell where ore was and where ore wasn’t. Shit tended to glow when there was ore, at least to the eyes of a faunus. When there wasn’t… well, any way to get back at the SDC the better, right? A little wasted work was no skin off his back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unless they found out. Then there definitely would be some skin off his back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam sighed. He hoped he got to go up to the surface soon. Being a miner was dreadfully boring.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maybe he’d even pay his ‘parents’ a visit… </span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>Adam walked through the city streets, cart wheels trundling past as he breathed in the crisp morning air. It was startling, to be among life and vibrance again. People kept coming up on his bad side, and he’d have to steel himself each time so he didn’t startle at sound where there was no sight. Being among so many humans was even more startling, and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about that. Conflicted, he supposed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Humans eyed the brand on his face, and his fingers twitched, the imaginary weight of a pickaxe heavy in his hands. With a scowl, Adam turned down a sidestreet. There was no one around except for a scuttledrake, scurrying across the dirty street. Adam’s face twisted. He hated dragons now almost as much as he used to love them. He lifted his foot up to stomp on it. It was only vermin, after all. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait!” A breathless voice said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam turned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A cat-eared faunus girl with long black hair and amber eyes rushed forward. “Don’t hurt it!” She picked up the scuttledrake out from under his foot and set it by the side of the road, where it scuttled off into the shadows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She turned back to him with a frown, then sighed. She gave him a hesitant smile, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Hi, I’m Blake.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hn.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not very talkative, are you?” Blake asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No. Adam was considered mostly a loner by the other miners, and he prefered it that way. Adam shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blake smiled. “Here. Try not to be a stranger, alright?” She walked away, basket in hand. In his own hand lay an apple.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Adam bit into it and smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Don’t be a stranger, huh? Hmm… </span>
</p>
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